In memory of our brother and son, Robert Bagnell,
who died moments after being tasered by police in Vancouver, British Columbia on June 23, 2004. Bob was the 7th Canadian to die and the 110th in North America.

Saturday, June 19, 2010

The report on Robert Dziekanski's death has brought into question the force's ability to continue to function effectively. The response to the Braidwood inquiry report, from RCMP management and governments, will determine it can survive as an effective police force.

It's not just the questions about the competence, training and judgment of the four officers who responded to a call at Vancouver airport two years ago. Those are serious, but things go badly -- tragically -- wrong in any large organization.

The more profound problem is the Braidwood inquiry's findings about what happened afterward.

We ask police to take on a hugely difficult task. Many officers face personal danger. Some are killed or kill on our behalf on the job. We give them great powers so they can do the required work effectively.

But we recognize the risk that those powers can be abused. We demand accountability and honesty from police forces and a commitment to the public interest, not their own. We believe that what police say -- in court or in public statements -- can be trusted.

Inquiry commissioner Thomas Braidwood's report found that was not true in this case.

The officers' actions were not justified, he found. They caused Dziekanski's death. The report on the Taser use "consistently and deliberately misrepresented and overstated" Dziekanski's actions and chose self-serving language to justify the officers' reaction.

The account of the incidents to investigators by all four officers were "deliberate misrepresentations, made for the purpose of justifying their actions."

Braidwood rejected their evidence at the hearings and concludes they lied to justify their actions.

The inquiry also considered RCMP media statements on the death. Braidwood found the initial statements were not deliberately misleading. But "the factual inaccuracies, consistently self-serving, painted Mr. Dziekanski in an unfairly negative, and the officers in an unfairly positive, light." The decision not to correct the inaccuracies was an "error in judgment," he concludes, not an attempt to mislead.

But the inaccurate statements, coming from the police as they investigated themselves, naturally eroded public confidence in the impartiality of the investigation.

The solution, Braidwood found, was to end the practice of police investigating themselves in cases involving death, serious bodily harm or any offence that could involve the appearance of bias. The Davies commission of inquiry into the death of Frank Paul after he was left in an alley by Vancouver police called for the creation of an independent investigation unit, staffed by civilians without connections to police.

Braidwood repeated the recommendation. "The perception that investigators will allow loyalty to fellow officers to interfere with the impartial investigative process, even if not justified in a given case, can lead to public distrust and undermining of public confidence in the police," he noted.

The province acted quickly. Soon after Braidwood delivered his report, Attorney General and Solicitor General Mike de Jong announced that the province will create a civilian investigations unit that will conduct criminal investigations into police-related incidents.

That is a crucial first step toward restoring confidence. The province has also promised to appoint a special prosecutor to re-open the investigation into Dziekanski's death and its aftermath. That is another welcome step.

We value, highly, the work of police officers. Braidwood notes the actions of these officers should not reflect unfairly on the thousands of RCMP officers who have earned a well-deserved good reputation while protecting communities.

But the Dziekanski case has, he says, galvanized public antipathy for the force and its members.

That damage could have been avoided with a thorough independent investigation, as well as honesty from the officers involved.

This case, along with several others in recent years, has damaged the force's most important assets -- public support and trust. Braidwood has set the RCMP on a course that could restore its ability to do its job.

The sooner de Jong follows through on yesterday's commitments, the better for everyone.

1 comment:

When someone complains about the RCMP, the RCMP gets to invesitgate itself and routinely finds itself innocent of any wrong-doing. This happened when Ian Bush was shot in the back of the head while in jail and when Adam Dormer was tasered five times for offering Constable Casey Murphy a high-five. Will an independent third party conduct retroactive invesitgations into their situations? How will they find justice?

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taser-Related Deaths = 1043+ in North America

See "A LIST OF THE DEAD"According to Taser International, the taser had nothing to do with any of these deaths. According to a Reuters investigation, Shock Tactics - Part 1 - The Toll, published on August 22, 2017, more than 150 autopsy reports have cited tasers as the cause or contributor to deaths across the U.S. That number may be higher; however medical examiners and coroners are often not impartial but are instead biased in favour of the Crown or, as has been shown, they are under tremendous pressure from - among others - Taser International, to make a particular finding.See Judge rules for Taser in cause-of-death decisions

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My Brother - Robert Bagnell June 27, 1959 - June 23, 2004

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2) Until such time as independent and unbiased study into the "real world" safety implications of Tasers has been properly completed, a moratorium must be imposed upon these weapons.

3) If, after independent and unbiased study has been completed, the Taser is going to remain in the police arsenal, it must be placed at a level equal to lethal force on the continuum of force and used only as a second-to-last resort.

4) Safety standards must be developed for Tasers. There are currently no Canadian safety standards in place for this weapon.

5) Police must not be allowed to investigate themselves but must be subject to independent and unbiased civilian oversight.

6) Families of people who die in police custody in Canada must be provided with funding so that they may be properly represented by legal counsel.

07. Robert Bagnell, 44 – Vancouver, BC - June 23, 2004 - X26 - "Official" cause of death: Consistent with restraint-associated cardiac arrest due to acute cocaine intoxication and psychosis. Bob's autopsy report showed marks on his body consistent to multiple taser shots, which incidently could not be affirmed by the pathologist because she could not explain those marks.

09. Samuel Truscott, 43 – Kingston, ON - August 8, 2004 - X26 - "Official" cause of death: Heart attack cause by drug overdose and "I can state categorically that the Taser did not play any role whatsoever in his death" said Chief Coroner for Ontario, Jim Cairns

24. Michael Langan, 17, Winnipeg, MB - July 22, 2008 - tasered 1 time - the autopsy report says Langan's death was caused by a heart arrhythmia brought on by the Taser shocks

25. Sean Reilly, 42 - Brampton, ON - September 17, 2008 - Peel Regional Police - X26 - tasered 2 times - the inquest jury will determine the official cause of death, however, “the forensic evidence indicated that the force used by the officers, including the Taser discharge, did not contribute to his death"

27. Trevor Grimolfson, 38 - Edmonton, AB - October 29, 2008, X26 - According to sources, after he was pepper sprayed, Trevor was tasered directly on the chest 5 times and tasered on the back of the neck 2 more times - Edmonton police said he was only tasered 2 times but testing on the tasers proves otherwise - "Official" cause of death: excited delirium brought on by drugs

29. Grant William Prentice, 40 - Brooks, AB - May 6, 2009 - RCMP - tasered 2 times - "Official" cause of death: acute cocaine toxicity and "the medical examiner also concluded the taser did not play a role in the death"

Ain't it the truth!

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80% percent of the population could be moved in either direction

Human rights activist Susan Sontag, when asked what she had learned from the Holocaust, said that 10 percent of any population is cruel, no matter what, and that 10 percent is merciful, no matter what, and that the remaining 80 percent could be moved in either direction.

THE Successes AREN'T the Problem

"The issue is not whether or not the taser can be used in a high percentage of cases to reduce death and/or physical trauma to officers and civilians alike. The issue is whether or not it's OK to kill the rest through ignorance and rationalization just because it's a small percentage ... The successes aren't the problem - the failures are. They're being told that tasers are nonlethal, so they blast away until people can't move. They're killing people by accident." Dave Siegler, father of Raymond Siegler, who died on February 12, 2004

The artistic side of Robert Bagnell

WE KNOW THIS MUCH IS TRUE

ROBERT ANGLEN

Robert Anglen, a reporter with The Arizona Republic, documented the first 167 Taser-related deaths. Mr. Anglen launched a journalistic investigation of Taser International, linking the Taser to multiple deaths, among other eye-openers.

At the 2005 Arizona Press Club Awards, Mr. Anglen won first place in the Investigative reporting category. He was the recipient of the Don Bolles Award for his report entitled "Taser tied to 'independent' study that backs stun gun'. “As part of an extraordinarily thorough investigation of Taser International, Anglen uncovered ‘smoking gun’ documents that showed the manufacturer was heavily involved in the key study that purported the devices are safe. Anglen also uncovered conflicts of interest and documented wide-spread problems with Taser safety — a matter of national and international public interest.”

In 2006, Mr. Anglen was a runner up for the Arizona Press Club's Virg Hill Journalist of the Year award. Peter Bhatia of The Oregonian wrote “Robert Anglen is an investigative reporter, pure and simple. Clearly, he is a reporter who, once he sinks his teeth into something, stays with it until the story is done. His ongoing work around the company that makes Tasers speaks to that."